Author-ized L.J.

#WritersCoffeeClub May 6 – Talk about something you've written which you expected would (or expect will) divide readers.

Oh, where to start? I have an upcoming podcast story based on an early Joseon-era historical record about a Crown Princess Consort's "affair" with an enslaved woman, Sossang. Sossang claimed the Princess sexually assaulted her. Sossang was dating another enslaved woman, Danji, and the Princess is alleged to have stalked the couple to keep them apart. I have translated and analyzed the record here: https://ljwrites.blog/posts/sossang-danji/

You know how this record is interpreted, right? Yeah, people generally handwave the sexual assault and stalking parts to make the Princess out to be a queer heroine 🙄 Like I get it, princesses are appealing and it's very easy to see her as a victim of character assassination by the patriarchy (which was very real and violently oppressive). Still. Why do we feel for princesses and disbelieve enslaved servants? What if Sossang spoke the truth?

That's the premise of my story, that the record is true, that maybe, just maybe, the victim wasn't lying. What a thought! And I didn't even try to write it in Korean because I know people won't like it, as with many of my stories about Korean history xD

#history #historicalFiction

Sossang and Danji: 15th century Korean maidservants in love

A record from the Annals of Sejong of a love disrupted between two enslaved women.

7:04amWeb
Show threadV, The Dragon Witch 🌙6h ago
@ljwrites oh yeah, that'll do it. :O
Show threadAuthor-ized L.J.3h ago
@vicorva I guess the idea of a queer predator, especially a queer fem predator, is also deeply uncomfortable on some level? 🤔 It's kind of a mess lol.
Show threadV, The Dragon Witch 🌙3h ago
@ljwrites 100%. That doesn't mean it wasn't true or doesn't make good fiction. Especially when you have other non-predator rep. But people hate to face that sometimes specific queer people are bad, I guess because there's been so much lies and prejudice against queer people generally. Like being queer makes people neither good or bad, but so much is cultural baggage is attached.